Cotton features father in new ad; Pryor also on air

Cotton features father in new ad; Pryor also on air

WASHINGTON – Republican Senate hopeful Tom Cotton is up with a new campaign ad that highlights his father’s influence on his values.

The 30-second spot, which will run on cable and broadcast outlets in the Little Rock and Fort Smith markets over the next two weeks, was filmed on the family farm in Dardanelle.

Cotton, sitting on the tailgate of a red pickup truck, explains that his father, Les, instilled in him a duty to country and the conviction that you must stand on principle, even if that means you stand alone.

Cotton’s mother was featured in an earlier ad, praising her son.

The campaign is spending more than $100,000 to air the folksy ad, according to spokesman David Ray.

Meanwhile, Sen. Mark Pryor’s campaign last week began airing a new statewide ad that seeks to draw a sharp contrast between the Democrat and his Republican challenger on Medicare.

“I wrote the Medicare Protection Act to stop politicians from destroying Medicare. My legislation makes it harder to raise the eligibility or to turn Medicare over to the insurance industry,” Pryor says in the ad. “My opponent voted to withhold benefits until age 70, and I’m trying to stop that.”

Cotton voted for a budget resolution that, among other things, would have raised the Medicare age requirement in the future. It would not impact anyone who is now age 56 or older.

The Cotton campaign pointed to the Congressional Budget Office, which has said that “substantial changes” are needed to sustain the Medicare program.

Pryor’s campaign said it has spent more than $100,000 on the ad that began running on April 25.

Both ads can also be viewed on the Internet. Here is a link to the Cotton ad: